The union representing almost 5,000 City of Winnipeg workers opened its strike headquarters on Monday.
This comes after CUPE Local 500’s collective agreement expired in February last year.
While the union has yet to go on strike, president Gord Delbridge said it wants to be fully prepared in case a settlement cannot be achieved.
“We’re hopeful that with the assistance of a neutral third party, we can find a way to reach a deal that will value Winnipeg’s front-line workers,” he said.
“If we can’t, however, we must be prepared for the possibility of job action in the near future.”
The City and CUPE 500 are set to meet with a conciliator again on Thursday.
“The main sticking point in reaching a deal with the City is wages,” he said. “Winnipeg’s front-line workers carried our community through the pandemic but are themselves falling further and further behind.
“Winnipeggers expect City Hall to support its own workforce, but we are seeing continued pushback against fairness for workers.”
The headquarters is located at 1500 Portage Ave. across from the Clarion Hotel.